German Notion
by LobbyLane
Summary: Max is tired. And Franz gives advice in German... Just a short One-Shot! A little fluff included ;) Max/Leo Again, this one is old... Just changed it a bit and thoought it's ok to upload it :D characters (c) Mel Brooks song-lyrics (c) their owners


Max looked up. This rehearsal seemed to last forever. There were several problems and they all sat there since 6:00am, without really seeing any results. After several coffees (25 cubs 'til now) he felt quite dizzy. Not that he was tired, no. How on earth could he be tired? If someone asked him, he would say some coffein-junky hold him back this day and forced him to take this stuff. After all, this was enough to make a sloth run faster as a cheetah.

Max felt like he was going to explode any minute. Not that he was thinking such silly stuff all the time and compared everything he noticed (in a moment of absence) with something incredibly senseless, (I mean, come one...a sloth?), he also felt a headache comming up and this whole crew started getting on his nerves more and more. Sure, he got used to the girlish talk and weird kind of movements Roger did. He also knew that Carmen usually would react to that in a more sissy-ish way, or that Ulla never really understood what they were trying to explain. He also knew Franz would babble something in German now and then. This simply WAS his team, a success. He knew.

But he didn't know why he had screamed at Leo.

Alright, all of them could use a little sleep, but Leo simply tried to convince him to take a break and go outside for a moment with him. This simple request lead to his fury. He didn't even know why.

Leo had left the theater for a moment, only to join several minutes later again, with a smile on his face, but totally ignoring him.

Max saw him chatting with Roger and Carmen. He got along with them pretty fine. Okay, they knew eachother for over a year now and it surely took Leo some time to get used to their "ways", even though he still seemed a little scared of some notions of them from time to time.

"Well, who wouldn't be scared of two guys acting like Mother and daughter on their way to the mall" he thought. There it was again. Max rolled his eyes and tried to concentrate once more. But no. After rubbing his eyes for a moment, he looked around again. Ulla ignored Leo. That was her usual behavior since they've parted three months ago. Leo showed up in his office that day, totally dissolved. A real wreck. Still, he didn't know why they parted. Leo didn't talk about any reasons and Max didn't dare to ask him.

Max's look slipped over to Leo again. He hold his head in his hands and simply watched him doing his regular things, talking to the actors or even making jokes about Carmen together with Roger. He smiled. As often as Max had seen Leo all these years, which was nearly every day, he always found it surprising to see this guy smile. He had changed a lot. From a mousy little scared nobody who felt uncomfortable everytime he crossed a street or someone accidentally touching him when crossing his way, to this sort of happy young man, who found every door was open for him. He got along with nearly everone now. And he smiled. Max realized this was kind of fascinating him more and more. He noticed the little wrinkles Leo got around his mouth everytime he did. And his eyes, oh the eyes. Brown and sealed with a shine only someone who had everything in life had. Funny, he noticed this now.

"You are not ze only one to notice zis" Franz said. Max whirled around in surprise. He hadn't noticed him standing next to him.

"What?" he asked.

"Ze vay you look at Mr Bloom" the huge guy said. "Das ist überaus eindeutig."

Max stared at him in disbelief. "Excuse me? What?" He asked again.

"Oh sorry, I said zat it is obvious vat you zink."

"I have no idea what you mean" Max answered, taking another swallow of coffee and turned back from the German guy as quick as possible.

"Oh no, I have nevaah seen you looking at someone else zis vay" he smiled.

Max turned to him again. "Wait a minute. What are you insinuating here?"

"Nozing."

"Oh yes, you did" Max hold him back. "What is it?" He felt kinda angry about this notion from someone who couldn't tell a human from a pigeon.

"Max, no need to get tetchy" he said. " I know vat you mean. Mr Bloom looks fantastic. Even I noticed zat."

" I never would think anything like that...wait a second. Do you mean, you find Leo...you know..."

"Attractive? Oh, ja" Franz answered.

"What is this? Some sort of Roger/Carmen - flu?" Max didn't belive this. "I never thought a guy like you could be...you know...gay?!"

"Nun, ich hätte auch nie gedacht, du denkst genauso" Franz said, just to find Max looking at him in a weird way again.

"Sorry, I said I never thought you vould zink ze same vay."

" I don't." Max chose to turn away again. This guy must be crazy. Telling him some sort of confession like that and then accusing him to think the same way. He had to concentrate on other things again. He took his coffee and walked towards the stage. Somehow they had to get through this horrible day with at least one little result. One little hint of progress.

He stopped after he walked through three rows to see what made thiat noise, that somehow woke him from his thoughts. Carmen seemed to be a little scathingly. Roger and Leo stood next to him, who held his arms folded and kept turning his back on them. Still, Roger and Leo smiled. They must've exaggerated their little jokes. They desperately tried to appologize, but Carmen was stubborn.

Max simply had to smile when he saw Leo's useless attempts to make this queer man laugh again by hopping around him and trying to show him how much more hilarious he was. He even started talking gibberish to him, which made Max laugh even more.

It was unbelievable. How could this guy manage it to get him out of the most stressful situations and made him laugh everytime anew. Leo was perfect in some odd ways. He was the only person Max thought about as such. Even his childish obsession with this silly blue blanket quite made sense. It was a part of Leo and made him what he was. Leopold Bloom.

"You know, du solltest es ihm wirklich sagen."

Max rolled his eyes again and felt like he'd been fallen on some hard gobble-stone. He turned to find Franz Liebkind standing next to him again.

"Listen to me, because I will only say this once" Max said. " If you feel the urge to tell me this nonsesne, please be so kind and at least use the English-tongue, for I simply don't get your German stuff."

"Sorry" Franz said and smiled at him. "I zink you really should tell him."

"Tell him what?"

"Zat you love him."

Max was taken aback. How could this Kraut get an idea like that?

"Lower your voice" he whispered. "How dare you telling such a nonsense? I'm not in love with a guy." He was furious now.

Franz smiled again. "I zink you are."

Then he walked off to join the actors again, with Max standing somewhat lost behind him.

"Du bist übrigens der Einzige, der bei ihm eine Chance hätte." Franz said shortly before he was on stage again.

Max shook his head. German. Why did this guy always told him things in German. He didn't even know what he was talking about and he was sure, he didn't want to.

He continued his way to the stage after abandoning what he'd just heard from his thoughts. On stage, Max started giving directions and told everyone to start again. Roger and Carmen had arbitrated their fight by now and got along well once more, which was more than good for everyone who worked with them. Max stood there, watching every single one of them doing their jobs.

"So, everything under control again?" He heard Leo asking.

He turned and instantly looked into those brown eyes again. His sorrows and stress felt down immediately.

"Yeah, everything's just fine." Max smiled. "I'm sorry, I yelled at you."

He didn't dare to look at Leo and so acted as if he was too busy watching everything. But still, he could feel Leo smiling again.

"Don't mention that" he said and joined the crowd.

Max looked after him.  
>"Maybe this crazy Kraut was right" he thought. "Well, at least one positive result today."<p>

The End


End file.
